15 December, 2009

Tigger Talk

Hey, what's the latest regarding the world's greatest athlete? And billionaire to boot?... at least before the scandal broke.

And silly me, I didn't even realize golfers were athletes, unless, of course, they are playing guttergolf, as detailed in my book The Hundred Year Meat Loaf, where I dish out, among other things, tons of sports wisdom. My fans love it anyhow... both of them.

I called Tiger a "weenie" years ago, a term I'm sure that would elicit various interpretations, all united in their derogatorinessness. You just don't hear kids say, "I want to be a weenie when I grow up." For me, regarding Woods, it's about weakness of character. Early on in his rise to fame, I saw him as a transparent, narcissistic phony. The revelations of late prove this to be true. Doesn't take much class to bed down with a dozen or so women who are not your wife...and then have a "come to Jesus" moment when you get caught.

A local sportswriter says he doesn't care what Tiger Woods does off the golf course —just don't tell him. As a member of the media himself he should surely know that you can't separate the public and private lives of someone of Woods' popularity. The paparazzi, and whoever, will make sure it's in our faces all the time. So what concerns me are the young people who will think it must be pretty cool to be Tiger. His behavior sends the wrong message to them.

Just be careful who your heroes are, and especially those of your kids. I don't think its realistic to expect anyone to be squeaky clean in all aspects of their life. But for Tigger, it looks like he's gone light years past a simple indiscretion...if we are to believe the media. (Yeah, that is asking a lot!). Maybe some day in a tear-drenched confession, a la Jimmy Swaggart, we'll hear the whole truth from the perp himself. Or is it, "once a weenie, always a weenie?"